Giving & Living – a successful start to 2018

February 20, 2018

It’s just a month since this year’s show and we’re now busily reviewing feedback from the event to see what we can do in 2019 to make it even bigger and better! We thought we’d share some of the facts, figures and comments with you – it seems to have been a great success for exhibitors and visitors alike.

We’ve had a terrific response to our visitor survey – so a big “thank you” to all those who took the time to answer our questions. The numbers tell a very positive story. About 90% said they’d recommend the show to a colleague or related business. Almost 70% were very satisfied, or satisfied, with the variety of exhibitors. Over 80% were very satisfied, or satisfied, with the venue. And best of all? Over 93% of respondents said they’d be back next year!

You can only tell so much from statistics and we’ve had some lovely comments about the show. Here’s just a few of them:

“Compact, close to home, good opening hours, excellent range of suppliers (not overwhelming, as other larger exhibitions can be!!). I usually find 2 or 3 new suppliers and if I do, then I’m happy”.

“Such a great chance to see what’s available in reality rather than on websites”.

“We have a small seaside gift shop and basically we do all our buying for the year at the show. We can see it, feel it, discuss it and there are always new products every year”.

“It’s a good show to find smaller suppliers and also more bespoke/personalised items.”

“The whole experience was enjoyable. I liked that it was a smaller venue which meant we didn’t feel overwhelmed trying to rush around and see everything. We could still fit it all in at a leisurely pace”.

The show got the thumbs up from exhibitors too:

Donald Clark of Proctor & Clark, who offer imaginative gift and homeware ranges to the trade, commented that “It’s a good show for us, with a great atmosphere. We like it because it attracts buyers with a very specific interest in coastal themed products. This year we certainly generated some interest from a type of customer that we haven’t seen before, so that was good”.

Corrie at Yellow Publications, suppliers of user friendly walking and cycling maps, adds that “We have exhibited at Giving & Living for several years now and we always look forward to this particular show. We regard it as our local show because we work out of Bodmin….but we are always surprised how far some of our visitors come. Not only are the staff of Hale Events a pleasure to deal with, but the show itself is a very friendly affair. We see many faces, old and new, amongst both the exhibitors and visitors and we always go away with good leads and good ideas”.

All the visitors who completed our survey were entered into a prize draw with the opportunity to enjoy a hamper filled with goodies from Taste of the West. We’d like to congratulate Julie Williams from A Dimond & Co, who was the lucky winner. Independent stationers & newsagents, A. Dimond & Co. have been trading at the same address in Honiton for over 115 years. The company is owned by directors Anthony and Janet Dimond, the 4th generation of the family to run the business, and it was Julie’s first visit to the show. First time lucky!

Next year Giving & Living takes place from Sunday 13th to Wednesday 16th January 2019 – why not put those dates in the diary now? Maybe you’ll be a winner next year too!